Some individuals suffer debilitating podiatric conditions which require the fabrication of prescription orthotics by a medical doctor for remedial relief. Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide a light-cure conformable device for use by skilled medical doctors and podiatrists that can quickly and effectively be used in the implementation of orthotic prescriptions, and at low cost relative to existing technologies.
However, many of the problems commonly experienced by the general public with articles of footwear simply stem from one or more of the following deficiencies; inadequate conformance or fit, stability, support, comfort, cushioning and shock absorption. Further, it can be readily understood that these qualities can be interrelated, e.g., the conformance provided by an article of footwear can contribute to the additional need or desire to improve cushioning by spacially distributing force applications and reducing shock. Accordingly, it is an object of this invention to provide in partial or complete combination, improved conformance or fit, stability, support, comfort, cushioning and shock absorption in relation to articles of footwear for members of the general public.
Eversion of the foot is sometimes generally referred to as pronation, and in particular, medial rotation of the calcaneus associated with articulation of the sub-talar joint is known as rearfoot pronation, whereas inversion of the foot is commonly referred to as supination. In accordance with the above discussion, it can be readily understood that an object of the present invention is to provide means for supporting and stabilizing a wearer's foot in an attempt to avoid possibly injurious conditions arising from excessive pronation or supination.
In brief, every individual has unique anatomical features and characteristics. A practical problem to be solved: How to accommodate for these individual differences and provide to wearers of articles of footwear individualized conformance or fit, stability, support, comfort, and enhanced cushioning, whether in partial or complete combination? Heretofore, there have been a number of attempted solutions to this problem which have enjoyed varied success. Obvious merits aside, some of the deficiencies of the prior art will be briefly addressed.
Footwear orthotics prescribed by a medical doctor are sometimes required in select cases to remedy debilitating podiatric conditions. For some individuals, there is no other practical or prudent alternative that will provide remedial relief. However, even footwear orthotics such as U.S. Pat. No. 4,470,782 taught by Robert L. Zimmerman, Jr. et al. take considerable time for a specialist to fabricate and can be relatively expensive. Prescription orthotics are not normally required for members of the general public to sucessfully enjoy the use of footwear.
Pre-formed "generic" products such as U.S. Pat. No. 4,677,766 taught by Charles J. Gudas can accommodate a greater, or lesser number of individuals depending upon the degree to which characteristic norms corresponding to the target population have been incorporated in the design of such products. In particular, foam materials of select shape have been used to partially accomodate for anatomical differences and enhance the conforming properties of articles of footwear. However, as every individual possesses different anatomical features and characteristics, a pre-formed "generic" product will not accommodate every individual to the same degree.
Various thermal formed or heat activated footwear inserts such as U.S. Pat. No. 4,237,626 taught by Dennis N. Brown have been introduced in the United States, in particular, skate and ski boot manufacturers have enjoyed some commercial success with products of this general type. However, the application of such footwear inserts generally involves the use of a relatively high temperature heating gun or oven, or other heating or molding equipment, thus requires numerous procedures which must be administered by a retailer. While generally less expensive, faster, and easier to make than prescription orthotics, methods that would possibly expose a wearer to high temperatures are not "user-friendly" for the general public.
Permanently inflated "air bags," or "diffusion pumping devices" such as those taught by Marion F. Rudy, e.g., U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,183,156, 4,219,945, 4,340,626, 4,906,502, 4,936,029, 5,042,176, and 5,082,361, all being hereby incorporated by reference herein, and U.S. Pat. No. 4,817,304 to Parker et al., hereby incorporated by reference herein, have enjoyed considerable commercial success, and have enhanced the cushioning and shock-absorbing qualities of articles of footwear. However, the use of relatively high inflation pressures in a permanently inflated "air bag," i.e., a bladder having inner volume including gaseous matter, and the like, generally achieves superior cushioning and shock-absorption at the expense of conformance due to the difficulty of manufacturing "air bags" to accomodate complex anatomical shapes, whereas the use of relatively low inflation pressures in an "air bag" characterized by a relatively thin cross-section generally achieves conformance at the expense of cushioning and shock-absorption.
As taught in U.S. Pat. No. 4,219,945 granted to Rudy, previously incorporated by reference herein, it can be advantageous to "tune" the mechanical response of a cushioning element in accordance with certain criteria, e.g., in order to influence the magnitude and rate of compression and recovery of the cushioning element when loaded by a wearer during use and thereby render the response of an article of footwear more in harmony with bodily movements: see column 2, lines 1-5, and column 7, lines 47-52. In addition, a biomechanically tuned shoe is taught by Thomas McMahon in U.S. Pat. No. 4,342,158, hereby incorporated by reference herein. Accordingly, a further object of the present invention can be to provide a "tuned" mechanical response and enhanced cushioning and shock-absorbing effects in association with the use of a conformable device.
Selectively inflatable air bladders, e.g., U.S. Pat. No. 4,874,640 taught by Byron A. Donzis, which can be inflated by manually actuating a pumping mechanism or other inflation means, can attain substantial conformance with respect to a portion of a wearer's anatomy. However, the relatively low inflation pressures generally associated with such air bladders can fail to provide optimal cushioning, or stability when such air bladders are subjected to the force applications commonly generated by wearers of athletic footwear during use.
Accordingly, an object of the present invention includes the use of a light cure material and a void including at least one gas within the inner volume of a conformable device, thereby enabling an "air bag," i.e., a bladder having inner volume including gaseous matter, to be formed to a desired shape when the light cure material is caused to set and cure.
There have been a number of attempts to introduce conformable materials such as flowable or viscous liquids, or flowable solids into articles of footwear in order to accomodate an individual wearer, e.g., U.S. Pat. No. 3,237,319 taught by A. W. Hanson, U.S. Pat. No. 3,407,406 to F. D. Werner et. al., U.S. Pat. No. 4,038,762 to Jack C. Swan, Jr., U.S. Pat. No. 4,380,569 to Robert E. Shaw, and U.S. Pat. No. 4,977,691 to Lewis P. Orchard, III. These materials generally remain flowable liquids or solids, and when subjected to a force application become moldable in conformance with a portion of a wearer's anatomy. However, such materials and devices normally resume an unformed state upon removal of an article of footwear and are therefor without a "memory" capability. This ability can be viewed as potential benefit, or alternatively, as a liability depending upon the intented object. In addition, such conformable materials threaten to add undesirable weight to an article of footwear when used in substantial quantities.
Further, there have been attempts to introduce conformable materials substantially comprising flowable liquids or solids in articles of footwear which can be caused to form substantially non-flowable solid material when caused to set and cure, e.g., U.S. Pat. No. 2,092,910 taught by C. H. Daniels, U.S. Pat. No. 3,786,580 to Melvin W. Dalebout, U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,128,951, 4,272,898, and 4,385,024 to Horace A. Tansill, U.S. Pat. No. 5,002,047 to Timothy C. Sandvig et. al., and U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,042,100, and 5,095,570 to Aharon Bar et. al.. Some of the prior art has proven deficient as result of the use of unsuitable materials or designs. Moreover, the procedures and methods associated with these attempts have for the most part been relatively complex, time consuming, expensive, or otherwise not amenable to mass production and use by the general public. The applicant has attempted to address certain deficiencies of the prior art in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,674,206, 5,101,580, 5,203,793, and co-pending application Ser. No. 07/976,407 now abandoned, all being hereby incorporated by reference herein.
In particular, the applicant's co-pending Ser. No. 07/976,407 teaches the use of select frequencies and wavelengths of electromagnetic radiation comprising light to cause a flowable or otherwise conformable light cure material to set and cure in relation to a conformable device for conforming to and supporting a portion of a wearer's anatomy. The meaning and scope of the word "light" is hereby defined in accordance with The New Collegiate Dictionary, published by A. Merriam-Webster, Springfield, Mass. 1979: "an electromagnetic radiation in the wavelength range including infrared, visible, ultraviolet, and X-rays and traveling in a vacuum with a speed of about 186,281 miles per second; specifically: the part of this range that is visible to the human eye." That portion of the electromagnetic spectrum most relevant to the present application comprises ultraviolet and visible light having a wavelength substantially between 280 and 750 nanometers. A representation of a portion of the electromagnetic spectrum may be seen in Physics, by John D. Cutnell and Kenneth W. Johnson, published by John Wiley & Sons, New York, 1989, Figure 30.6, page 655.
Ultraviolet light cure capability presently extends, e.g., to adhesives, inks, epoxies, resins, and various polymers and copolymers including resilient elastomers. The latter presently find use, e.g., as optical coatings, and as encapsulation or insulation means for use in the electronics industry.
Further, blue light cure materials are known in the medical dental industry, e.g., FERMIT.TM., TETRIC.TM., and HELIOMOLAR RADIOPAQUE.TM., distributed by Ivoclar Vivadent of 175 Pineview Drive, Amherst, N.Y. 14228.
It can be readily understood that a further object of the present invention extends to the use of various inventive devices, methods, and processes, as described herein, for effecting necessary and sufficient exposure of a conformable device, or any other footwear components including light cure materials, to ultraviolet or visible light having a wavelength substantially between 280-750 nanometers in order to provide in partial or complete combination; individualized conformance or fit, improved stability, support, comfort, and cushioning effects.
Moreover, the present invention anticipates the possible use of light cure materials in the manufacture and production of various component parts of articles of footwear, e.g., the making of sockliners, midsoles, and shoe uppers. Presently, conventional manufacturing processes are relatively energy, labor, and material intensive, as compared with light cure methods and processes recited herein. For example, the forming of a conventional resilient foam midsole commonly requires a cycle time of 5-7 minutes in a mold utilizing considerable heat and pressure. It is then a further object of the present invention to improve production methods and processes relevant to the manufacture and production of articles of footwear.